BADOLBILZ

He was unhappy in Denver. He criticized the OC in the media last season. I think them going out and paying Melvin Gordon when he was running for 1,000+ yards and playing on UDFA money........as a local kid.......really irritated him.

Nice meme but the wrong scene.......had to point out because the extra in the brown sweater with blue shirt is a Bills fan. Nice guy but farts a lot and thinks it's funny. Batted after him in little league unfortunately.

One of the chief differences is that those SB teams were really before widespread free agency............a time when players were really tied to teams for a very long time so it was easier to develop talent from within. I think back then first round picks were on 6-7 year deals. If the team drafted you they weren't going to put you in bubble wrap because you *might* be good on offense or defense like they have to now.........they didn't have to.......you were under control for so long that you had to play special teams. Now, those roster spots are like your farm system.......you really want them more for drafting and developing. It's a choice teams have to make. The Bills dedicate more ST only positions and $ than most.......if not more than any.

Yeah I think Barkley's QB career is over. You are going to feel bad for all the shade you threw on him when he is watching the game next to you at Busby's next season though.

Yeah there is this notion here........probably because the Bills backs are slow...........that speed backs can just make a living running outside the tackles. But the yards are to be had inside. The guard/tackle gap is the new "outside" run. It doesn't pay very often to bounce it toward the sideline against fast, undersized LB's that are most at home tackling a RB on the side rather than face up(where it hurts). Lindsay does a solid job of working thru the line and then he has that burst that Moss and Motor lack and can quickly eat up another 8-10 yards.

He plays special teams but he also gets open in the pass game

He was a playa' tho.......as they used to call him in the lockeroom:

My first thought was that this should make @Kelly the Dog very happy.........he finds Barkley about as useful as I do Star Loturdlelei.

The issue is having multiple O and D guys who are pretty un-playable at anything other than ST on the active roster every week. That part is tolerable........but the Bills have also paid a premium to get them in UFA in recent years. When you tie up 3-4 spots on vets who just play ST you limit your ability to develop players who can replace those that depart in UFA. That's where $2M too much for a ST only guy turns into having to pay $10M for a weak side LB because you didn't have one on a rookie contract ready to step in.

This thread should be merged with the "management thinks RB's are the problem" thread.

I actually totally agree with you.........and all these veteran single purpose players block developmental roster spots as well......... but I gave you a thumbs down because you were on a roll.........the broadest set of negative reactions ever........well done.

Is that guy still here?

Fingers crossed that they have the mentality that job #1 is keeping Josh Allen healthy and happy. We can talk all we want about filling needs etc. but this roster ain't even getting to the playoffs with a Philip Rivers like, adequate QB performance. Not in this AFC. Not a lot of matchup problem causers on this roster.........just a lot of solid players around a beast of a QB.........which is why they still seem pretty distant from KC, who has more on both sides of the ball.

Samuel is not just fast dave..........he was one of the better downfield receivers in the NFL last year. He's not just a juiced up Isaiah McKenzie. He's a RB who converted to WR and is now an outstanding, versatile AND lightning fast WR. I like Sanders but at some point Sanders is gonna' hit the wall. 34 is old for a WR. I already think he's become less impactful than his stats indicate. It would be a shame if it happens in a year when the Bills are considered one of the conference favorites.

I agree that there have been a lot of good WR the past few drafts..........but there was a big drought at the position from 2015-2017........so I'm not going to assume that there will be plenty in "every draft class". The problem with Rondale Moore is he has been injured for the past two years and basically only has a great freshman season in his portfolio. Curtis Samuel is a proven and durable young veteran NFL player.........the Bills are ready to win now............he is outstanding not only out of the backfield or slot(where he could succeed Beasley and bounce back and forth between the backfield to allow more versatility).........but he is also a provenexcellent deep ball receiver. He has developed into an unusual player and he's not just elusive.........he's a legit 4.31 speed guy. There aren't as many of those out there as you may think.

Yes, I think he's a fit. And I also will be right back here arguing against giving him a good contract if he comes in here and repeats the huge numbers he put up as a rookie in 2018. They just need some speed at RB to provide a change of pace.........he should be that and also be motivated in a contract year. He is legitimately fast..........faster than Etienne who is just "fast for a RB" and the team should take the position that a first round pick is the equivalent of $20M in cap space........you don't use those picks on runnin' bax even if Buddy Nix says you need one.

I'm not missing it. I know he's BEEN a great route runner.......I know that they probably looked at the KC tape and said John Brown was a detriment and that if they had another route runner like Diggs they might have been able to attack that look better. I get it. But I also think they lack speed on offense.........I KNOW it actually........ and they now have 2 starting WR who will be old for the position and free agents after the year. Samuel is exceptional on the deep ball........can play slot when Beasley leaves and is actually a trained RB who can produce there too. He was a great fit, IMO. It's a great draft for WR.......one of the top 3 for depth in the past 20 years with as many as 20 WR with first 3 round grades........I hope they select no less than 2 and bring in a high upside guy in UDFA who might be able to be a gunner or KR too. We shouldn't take it for granted.......the 2014 draft was flush with WR talent....the Bills took one then focused on needs......and ended up short handed at WR soon after and couldn't do much about it in the drafted because the pipeline dried up for a long time until ramping up recently.

I have not been negative on Beane. I've been objective. I literally gave a thumbs up to every one of his first round picks which is something I've never been able to do with any previous Bills GM. I have given positive feedback on many, many moves. But the focus around here is centered on the negative and thusly that's what ends up driving discussion. And there have definitely been bad decisions which I have been critical of. Those are what you recall. Often I cite that you don't need to make good decisions all the time to be good.......so bad ones aren't necessarily mortal wounds. But still, any time I criticize a move I'm called a hater. To illustrate.....I often bring up my push for the Bills to draft Aaron Donald here on TSW........because I only actually start a new thread about once per year. I think I got like 5 responses in that entire thread. If I posted a blank face emoji in response to a Beane move I'd get more responses than that.

Home grown = drafted or UDFA acquisitions in their draft year. Me trying to re-trace the stat provided during the playoff tv broadcasts that hundreds of thousands of Bills fans heard isn't worth my time............the stat was met with surprise by some at our game parties who think this is a very young team(it's in fact one of the oldest rosters.... look it up). And we also know how true it rings and that the people who disagree with it will say it makes no difference even if I list the number for every NFL team and the Bills happened to be last. After much disagreement when presented, I once spent two hours combing thru tape of games to prove that CBS provided a graphical stat early in 2015 showing that LeSean McCoy had the lowest yards per touch in the NFL among qualified players in 2014. Found it, posted the screen shot. Nary a comment, retraction, re-consideration or apology followed.....so if you fella's want to insist that it's false......complain your little chili pepper hearts out......I promise you I don't give a single *****. When McBeane came in they chose to clear the decks of the prior regimes draft picks............then they have traded up many times within drafts, limiting the amount of incoming draft picks..........and they have moved on from draft picks that performed promisingly, notably Wyatt Teller, to save room for well paid veteran reserves with short futures.........and they have heavily backfilled the roster with free agents.......most notably veteran special teamers. The paragraph above is a formula for not having a lot of homegrown talent on your active roster. It's not a big deal if you are developing your own replacements for players who hit free agency. Thus far, that hasn't been a strong suit.

No. I trust the network statisticians that gave us the stat. If you want to claim it's untrue then you are welcome to dispute their information. Blaming the choice to re-tool the team the way they did for why they are up against the cap after just 4 seasons.......and without a QB on a big contract......is what you could call a "reason but not an excuse". That's when one can get into the "well if they just selected Mahomes or Watson they'd have had extra draft capital and wouldn't have needed to sign so many free agents" kinda' square-one hindsight which I don't care to do. Things change fast in the NFL.......after 4 seasons and 5 offseasons........most NFL rosters are nearly completely flipped anyway.......so if they are still harmed by those 2017 and 2018 pro personnel decisions then it's not the justification that you may think it is.

First of all.......easy with the language.........you can get flagged for less than "dumb". And I do know why they are in a tight spot despite having a QB on a rookie deal.........and it's a combination of things. Just some examples.........in addition to the terrible 2018 free agent class.........they've spent liberally over and over on bad backup quality OL........a bunch of special teamers that have blocked developmental spots..........underperforming former Carolina Panthers(they've burned like $30M and counting in cap space on KB and Josh Norman and Mario Addison, for instance). You can look at it like......."well it's handy to have a Spencer Long around"...........but it's also why they don't have Wyatt Teller. At some point you gotta' be able to succeed with less experienced, expensive, low ceiling players and use your depth positions on players who can be developed into good starters over time. Understand.........the basis for comparison isn't the worst teams in the league anymore..........the reason the other playoff teams had more home grown talent is because its hard to sustain the kind of model the Bills have used. AFC playoff teams that remain serious contenders like Tennessee, Indianapolis, Baltimore and KC have had excellent rosters for longer than the Bills........so the Bills really shouldn't have less HGT than them. I'm not assuming the Bills won't.........they have the highest paid personnel department in the league and they have a ton of continuity in those offices.......they should be PRIMED to have a great draft and UDFA and find a bunch of value in the late stages of FA.

I was hoping they would go after some players that they could legitimately sign to longer term deals with small first year cap hits.........like a young player like Curtis Samuel versus a 34 year old Sanders. Not just because the player is better.........but the roster is already one of the oldest in the league........mainly because they have a very small amount of home-grown players..........so if they just try to run rentals thru they further cultivate their own inability to draft and develop better........which they will really need to do to maintain the roster when Josh cap figure jumps in 2023.

You take offense to an exaggeration..........then you follow with that........citing a specific example from an event 4 offseasons ago as evidence? Yeah Beane is not terrible but do you think Thuney gave the SB favorite Chiefs a discount with that contract? Money still talks. Beane nickel and dimed the team into a tighter cap situation than a team with a QB on a rookie deal should be. Done with a terrible 2018 UFA class and then a steady wave of special teams and backup player over-pays and decisions to hold onto players a year or two too long versus a year too soon. Got over reliant on free agency for depth. They had the fewest own-drafted and developed players of all of the playoff teams.

ONLY IF THE PLAYER OPTED OUT. As I've said 3 times now.......if a player opted in(chose to take the risk and play)........ he was basically sharing the risk of the season with ownership.........if the season were cancelled 2 games in(for example) they would not receive all of their pay.......and that season would (of course) count against their contractual obligation. Apparently you do not follow the other sports, but those players have almost entirely guaranteed contracts but only got paid for the portion of their seasons that took place. MLB players only played 60 games.......they got paid a pro-rated portion of their guaranteed salary........and the team's part of the contractual obligation was considered met, and a season accrued. MLB players are playing strictly on 2021 contracts this year.......there is no "roll over". That's the way it would have been for the non-opt outs in the NFL. The whole reason why there was a deadline to opt out.........and there wasn't an option to opt back in...........was so that players understood that they had to either share in the risk with the league or stay home and accept the $350K or $150K that they qualified for.

Yeah as I said........if they opted out then the guaranteed money was promised to be shifted to the following season...........if they opted in they would have inevitably gotten no better treatment than the players in league's that could not play their entire seasons....MLB, NBA and NHL. Those players got their pay pro-rated for the portion of the seasons their league played.........had they played none of the schedule and the league had no revenue then that season of their contract would have been considered accrued......not merely pushed forward. Those MLB, NBA and NHL players can't make that money back from the shortened season. Star actually had an extra reason financially..........the $350K he was alotted as a "pre-existing underlying condition" player was just extra money that didn't deduct from his guaranteed salary. The guys who opted out without one of those excuses got $150K but it comes back out of their 2021 paycheck. I am open to the idea that he was irked about being leveraged into a pay cut by Beane.......and given the chance to take the season off and possibly never have to play another down of a game he is tired of and STILL get the last $5M the team owed him(plus a free $350K).........he just took it. But that's not what I am saying. What the Bills think is another matter. As for his underlying condition........who knows........about 7% of the general public over age 20 have CAD......just one heart condition of many....... so you can bet that quite a lot of players have underlying conditions.........and there were 15 larger categories that players could fall into and qualify for pre-existing underlying conditions. A reasonable guess is that 1/4 of the league or more could have opted out with underlying conditions. Yet only 60 players did.